Hero Down
by GTheRantingGriffin
Summary: After responding to a fire, Firefighter Samuel Jones was killed in a fire. Penny is left with the mental scars of the accident. However when Sam's older brother, Darian comes to town she ends up falling in love. A family member makes himself known to them by leaving fires and also clues that reveal Sam's accident...wasn't a normal accident. Rated T for nightmarish themes and blood.
1. Chapter 1

**Alas, I am making another Fireman Sam fanfiction** **.** **I** **'** **ve gotten a little burned out with Tip of Spear** **.** **I thought** **"** **eh I** **'** **ll just make another one** **"** **and this is how this one was born** **.** **Some of my worse ideas come to me when I'm half asleep. So, enjoy this one. Make sure you do review. I do enjoy the random bits of feedback that I get.**

Chapter One

The alarm bell inside of the Fire Station went off. "a fire at the Wholefish Café!" came Station Officer Steele's voice through the PDA system. Sam slid down the pole. He ran over to the shelf grabbing his gear. His colleagues followed suit. Little did they know that this fire was going to be a decider. A decider in fates if you will. "okay we'll need Venus and Jupiter. Penny and Arnold will follow behind me and Elvis in Venus. Arnold you're with me in Jupiter." Arnold saluted Sam. "you've got it Sam!" Sam jumped into Jupiter. He quickly buckled himself up. Arnold climbed in after him. He flicked the siren on the minute he climbed inside. Both fire engines took to the streets. Sam's heart was pounding in his chest. His family was in danger and he knew it. Up in the distance, black smoke poured into the sky. Orange embers danced around the building. The Fire Brigade arrived at the scene. Sam quickly stepped out of Jupiter. He was met by Bronwyn. "Charlie is trapped in there!" Sam gulped. "alright we'll get him out of there. Arnold, you cut the power off at the mains, Elvis you deal with the fire while I go inside and rescue Charlie." Elvis nodded. Penny put on the checkered vest and grabbed the electronic clipboard out from the glove compartment in Jupiter. She then collected the breathing apparatus tags from each of her colleagues. "Cridlington air 100%, McKinley air 100%" Penny put Sam's tag into the clipboard last. "Sam air 30% low oxygen." All the color drained from Penny's face. "Sam!" she yelled. It was already too late. Sam had disappeared into the flames.

Arnold had rushed in first. He cut the power off at the mains. "powers off Sam!" he yelled. Sam nodded. He quickly ran upstairs. He heard his brother's cries for help coming from the living room. Charlie had been cornered by the flames. Sam took a step back. He then ran forward. He jumped over the narrow strip of flames. He helped Charlie up. "stay low Charlie." Charlie nodded. Sam and Charlie moved over the strip of flames. The roof then groaned above them. The supports gave way and some of the roof came crashing down. Sam pushed Charlie out of the way. Charlie slammed face first into the wall. The roof came down on Sam. Sam felt his lungs being pressed against his rib cage. He was low on oxygen. He began choking for a breath. His world slowly going black. "Sam!" shouted Charlie. He was desperately trying to free his brother from the debris. Sam was suffocating from the lack of oxygen. The alarm suddenly went off on the clipboard. "Firefighter Jones Oxygen 5%" Penny chucked the clipboard down. She ran into the café. She quickly made her way up the stairs. She saw Sam trapped underneath the roof. She jumped down next to Charlie helping him. She struggled trying to get the beam off Sam. "go." Croaked Sam. Penny shook her head. She grunted lifting the beam up some. Her body shook with the effort. The light was fading from Sam's eyes. His vision blurred in and out. His world soon went black and cold.

Penny watched Sam go limp. She pushed the beam up all the way. Charlie pulled his brother's body out from underneath the rubble. Penny let the beam fall back onto the ground. She lifted one side of Sam while Charlie got him on the other side. They carried him down the stairs and outside. Penny laid Sam down on the ground. She quickly removed his damaged breathing apparatus. "Sam? Sam?" she put an ear to his chest. She couldn't hear his heart beating anymore. She put her hands to his chest. She began doing chest compressions. "someone! Call nurse flood!" she yelled. Her voice shaking. She wasn't going to lose Sam. She kept doing CPR on him. "come on Sam." She begged. "please Sam don't do this!" She put her lips to his breathing air into him. She then went back to doing chest compressions. Her body shook at the realization that she may have not gotten him out in time. She burst out into tears. She hugged Sam's body. "please Sam." She begged. "you have to wake up!" Nurse Flood finally arrived at the scene. Penny helped load Sam up. "will he be okay?" she asked. Helen took her hand. "I hope so Penny. I haven't lost a patient before and I won't tonight." And with that Helen closed the doors to her small ambulance. She quickly drove away. Penny looked back at the café. The café stood in molten ruin. Grey smoke bellowed into the sky. "the fire is out." Whispered Arnold. Penny nodded. "you two head back to the station and tell Station Officer Steele what happened. I'm going to head to Newtown." Arnold nodded. "you sure you don't want us to come with you?" he asked. She shook her head. She watched her colleagues climb into Jupiter and drive away.

Penny stood there for a few moments longer. "I'll go with you, Penny." Murmured Charlie. She nodded. The both got into Venus. Penny rolled down her window. "you guys should head to the station. I'm sure Station Officer Steele will work out a possible living arrangement for you guys." She said. Bronwyn held her kids close. "we will, thanks Penny. Please keep us posted on Sam's condition." Penny rolled the window back up. She sped away from Pontypandy. Her heart was missing crucial beats. Her hands were shaking so bad she couldn't keep them on the wheel. She found it incredibly hard to breathe.

Charlie and Penny arrived in Newtown. Penny parked Venus outside of the hospital. She removed her helmet putting it between her and Charlie. Charlie took her hand. "Deep breaths Penny." He murmured. His thumb running over the top of her knuckles. He could feel her rapid pulse underneath his thumb. "Sam wouldn't want you to hyperventilate." She nodded. She slowed her breathing down. The both of them walked into the hospital. Charlie went over to the receptionist. "excuse me miss, what is Sam's condition?" he asked. The receptionist looked up at him. "one moment." She picked up the phone ringing one of the doctors. She quickly spoke with them over the phone before hanging up. She had a grave look on her face. "Samuel Peyton-Jones was pronounced dead the moment he arrived at the hospital from suffocation." Penny blacked out.


	2. Chapter 2

Chapter Two

Penny woke up back at her house. Ellie was out cold in the chair next to her bed. Penny sat up slowly looking around. She grabbed her phone off of the table. The clock read: 1:30pm DST. She sighed laying back on the bed. Ellie heard her friend wake up. "I'm glad to see your awake." She yawned. "How long was I out?" questioned Penny as she kept her gaze focused on the ceiling. "about a day and a half. You hit your head pretty hard when you fainted." Penny laid onto her side. "Station Officer Steele has given you paid leave." Penny rolled over to face Ellie." Why?" she asked. A worried tone showed in her voice. "he's worried that you may go AWOL on the job. He's recommended that you take some time off to grieve." Penny shook her head. "Shit." She muttered. Ellie took her friend's hand. "don't worry Penny. I think it's a good idea that he's given you some time off." Penny laid in silence. "I can't believe he's gone." Tears welled up in her eyes. Her head reeled back to the scene of the crime. Watching her friend die right in front of her. "I should have done more to help him. If I had just had a few more moments to reach out to him. I could have warned him about his oxygen tank." Penny sobbed into her pillow. Ellie rubbed her back. "it's not your fault Penny. Don't you dare blame yourself." Penny's fist clenched. "it's my duty to keep everyone safe. I failed to protect him." Ellie held Penny close. Penny sobbed into her neck.

Three days go by….

Penny stood in front of her bathroom mirror. Her eyes red from crying. She was dressed in her blue firefighter's jacket with white slacks. She also had a blue beret on her head. She wiped the tears from her eyes. She stepped away from the mirror." It's time." She whispered. She grabbed the keys to Venus off of her nightstand. She walked out of the house. Her body trembled at the thought of having to lay Sam's body to rest. The guilt of watching him die still tugged at her heart. She gulped back the tears. "he wouldn't want to see you cry." She whispered under her breathe. She got into Venus. She drove away from her house which stood silently on a hill just outside of PontyPandy. The funeral was being held in the town hall. She parked behind Station Officer Steele's car. She joined her comrades at the town hall entrance. People from different Welsh towns were all there to pay their respects to the fallen firefighter. Banners and flags from different countries all blew in the breeze. Penny stood up a bit more. She kept her height similar to the rest of the brigade. The police officers from Newtown Police Department were the first to arrive followed by, Jupiter which had Sam's casket on the top of it. The fire engine had black ribbons hung on its side. The band played beside Jupiter. Penny could hear the faint roar of the drums. Tears threatened to fall out of her eyes again. She watched Elvis and Arnold go over to Jupiter as the police officers handed off the casket to them. Both of the boys lifted up the casket. They carried it into the town hall. Station Officer Steele and Penny followed in behind them. Chief Fire Officer Boyce was waiting at the front. He helped the boys lay the casket down. Boyce opened the top part of the casket. Sam had been dressed in his Firefighters' uniform. His hair was slicked back. Penny kept from sobbing again. Station Officer Steel stood in front of the podium. He coughed into his hands. "please be seated."

Once everyone had taken their seats, Station Officer Steele began his speech. "Fireman Sam was a very brave fellow. He put his life on the line for those he cared about. I'm glad to have known him for as long as I have. He was there to help those that he could. He was there during our darkest hour when PontyPandy nearly burned to the ground. He will be missed by all of us in PontyPandy. Let his legacy be continued by further generations." Station Officer Steele stood down from the podium. He rejoined Chief Fire Officer Boyce. Boyce soon went up to the podium. "will the family of Firefighter Jones step forward." Charlie walked up to the front with Bronwyn and the kids. The twins clung tightly to Bronwyn. Charlie stood in front of Boyce. He kept from crying again. Boyce motioned from the two police officers to join them. They had the Wales flag folded between them. Boyce took the flag gently. "I am very sorry for your loss. You must be very proud of your brother." Charlie nodded. He sniffed. "he was the best at the what he did. He was a really good Uncle to my kids." Boyce handed him the flag. Charlie took it and saluted Boyce. Him and his family rejoined the rest of their friends in the crowd. Boyce stood in front of the podium once more. "now is the time for everyone to pay their respects. Once it is over we will be laying him to rest in the cemetery."

Penny walked over to the casket. She saw how peaceful Sam looked. "I should have done more." She whispered. "I know you aren't in pain anymore but I can't help but feel it was my fault you died." She put two fingers to her lips kissing them before laying them down on his cold forehead. "I'll miss you. I won't forget all the times you've been there for me." Charlie tapped her shoulder gently. He pulled her into a hug letting her cry into his neck. "I'm so sorry Charlie." She cried. Charlie rubbed her back. "I don't' blame you Penny." He whispered. "please don't beat yourself up." She sniffed pulling away. He lifted up her chin. He wiped away her tears with his thumb. "he died protecting the both of us. Keep all the memories you have of him with you." Penny could make out the faint shape of Sam's spirit standing behind Charlie. Sam gave Penny a small smile. She sniffed softly. She could feel the coldness around her hand. "it's never goodbye…it's see you soon."

 _ **Many thanks for the reviews. I do appreciate the feedback. Keep in mind my updating schedule is very weird considering the load I have on my plate at the moment. I really had to do my research for this one. It's really tough to kill Sam off. I know he's a fan favorite and people would hate to see anything bad happen to him.**_

 _ **Anyway please make sure to review I love the feedback**_

 _ **Adieu**_

 _ **Melonsworth**_


	3. Chapter 3

Chapter Three

About a week had passed since the funeral. Finley had moved in with her sister, Penny. She offered to keep an eye on her. "you need to go out and have some fun." Sighed Finley. She sat by her sister on the couch. "I don't know Fin. I really shouldn't be outside." Finley wiggled her finger in her sister's face. "don't give me that shit. You're going out. Go upstairs and get changed." She herded Penny upstairs. "put on that pretty red dress. The one you got for the banquet." She shoved Penny into her room and closed the door. Penny shook her head. She went over to the closet opening it. She had her usual civilian clothes and, her work clothes. In the very far corner, she spotted a scarlet red dress. She grabbed it and laid it on the bed. She began to strip down. Finley waited for her sister downstairs. She gasped seeing Penny in her dress. "you look amazing!" She took her sister's hands. "Now let's finish getting the rest of you all cleaned up." She whisked Penny into the bathroom. She did Penny's hair up into a bun allowing two of her bangs to cover the left side of her face. Finley smiled at Penny in the mirror. "There you go. Now come on. Let's go." She urged. She helped her sister into the passenger side of her car. Penny sat up in the seat. Finley got in on the driver's side. "now I'm taking you to a club in Newtown. I really want you to have a good time. You've been cooped up inside that house for an entire week." Finley cringed lightly. She punched her sister on the shoulder. "who knows you may run into a lover boy." Penny raised an eyebrow at Finley. "you realize if I bring any sort of man into my house he only gets to stay 24 hours." Finley tsked under her breathe. "don't be so uptight."

The girls arrived in Newtown. Finley pulled up outside of the Twin Falcons Club. Penny could feel the vibrations coming from the speakers inside of the club. They flashed their IDs at the bouncer before entering. Penny was meet by loud music. "I'm going to head to the dance floor." Shouted Finley over the music. Penny nodded. She watched her sister disappear off into the crowd. She headed over to the bar where she felt her heart nearly fall out of her chest. She spotted a dark ginger haired man about Sam's height. He had a bit more muscle to him. He was glaring at her through the corner of his eye. His dark grey eyes watched her every movement. She gulped as she walked over to where he was sitting. He leaned away from her as she sat in the stool next to his. The bartender looked up from the glass he was holding. "what will it be tonight?" he asked. "a Cosmopolitan." She replied. The bartender nodded. She heard the man next to her gruff under his breathe. "weak." He chuckled. "If you want to have a really good time you should have the Hurricane." Penny just rolled her eyes at him. She could hear the light accent he had. "I take it you're not from around here?" she questioned. He shakes his head. "I'm from the states." He put his drink back down on the counter. "I can tell." She commented. The bartender came back with her drink. Penny took a sip of it. She kept an eye on the man next to her. He took another glass and downed it in a matter of seconds. She was rather impressed. "you can hold down alcohol rather well." He laughed softly. "being a career drunk does have it's advantages. I just have a rather refined taste which is more then what I can say for you." She turned to look at him. "that sounds like a challenge that I aim to win." He winked at her. "bartender, get us about twenty shots. I'll pay." He smirked at Penny.

The two began drinking together. Penny had gotten really drunk by her tenth shot. She was starting to get all sorts of funny ideas. She couldn't really sit upright in the chair anymore. The man caught her before she fell out of the chair. "ya know? I really like you. Like really like you." His speech was slurred. "sh-h-ut up." She blushed. He pressed his lips to her. She leaned into the kiss. A part of her knew this was wrong but it felt so right. He could taste the alcohol on her breathe. He grabbed her by the waist. "how about I take you into the back room and show you a real good time?" She smiled at him like a deranged idiot. She no longer had control over her good conscious that was screaming at her to punch him in the face and walk away. He took her to one of the rooms in the back and slammed the door shut. He pushed her onto the couch running his hands down her. Penny moaned softly holding onto him. He kissed her neck. His teeth lightly teasing her skin. She shivered under his touch. "Damn it quit teasing me!" she growled. He took his shirt off chucking it to the side. Penny felt her body start to feel warm. She had never felt this way about anyone but she sure as hell didn't want this feeling to stop. He got on top of her again. Moans and pants escaped her mouth. She felt her rock in and out of her rapidly. She reached her climax and before long her body slipped into paradise. The man laid next to her. "the names' Darian." He whispered. "Penny." She replied. The both of them turned to look at each other. "how about you come back to my place and show me what you can do cowboy?" she suggested with a light smirk. "with a body like yours? Hell yeah." The both of them got up and got dressed. She took Darian home with her leaving her sister stranded at the club. Right now she was on a lust high. This is what her body was craving. She needed someone to help take the pain away.

Penny took Darian up to her room. She pulled him down on top of her once more. She didn't remember much of what happened after that.

 _ **Like I said before the reviews are lovely. I do enjoy working on this story more then I do Tip of Spear from time to time. I hope you guys enjoy this chapter. For now this is Melonsworth bidding you fair well**_

 _ **Adieu**_


	4. Chapter 4

Chapter Four

Darian woke up the next morning to Penny's cellphone going off. He picked it up. "Hello?" he asked. He kept one arm around Penny who was sleeping soundly. "who the hell are you?!" came the voice on the other end of the line. "I'm Darian. I went home with your sister last night." He heard the voice laugh. "figures. Well will you tell Penn once she wakes that she left her younger sister behind?" it asked. Darian cracked a grin. "I will. Sorry." He then hangs up putting her phone back on the nightstand. Penny cuddled more into his chest. He smiles rubbing her back. He pulled away from her. Penny then moved over to his spot cuddling down more. He smiles tossing his clothes back on. He heads downstairs into the kitchen. He was a little hungover from last night. He searched her cabinets for coffee beans. "fuck is with all of this tea?" he wondered. "figures fucking welsh people and their tea." He found what he was looking for. He made a fresh batch of coffee for himself. "I'd better pick her sister up before I head out." He turned off the coffee maker. "at least when she wakes up she'll have something to help with her hangover." He grabbed the keys to her car off of the couch. He hoped her sister wasn't too mad about last night. They did leave in a rush last night and it was amazing they didn't get into an accident on account of how drunk they were. He had put her sister's number into his phone. He rapid dialed in. "Hello?" she greeted. "Hey where are you at?" he asked. "I'm in the little motel upstairs. Room 4A." He nodded but she couldn't see it. "hey I'm sorry for kidnapping your sister last night." She chuckled again. "it's not problem really. She needed it. I'm surprised she let you into the house. Well since she was kind enough to let you into the house, she'll let you at least spend 24 hours there." Darian felt his heart break a little. "only 24 hours huh?" Finley sighed. "yeah. I don't want to go into too much detail but maybe you can find a way to change her mind." He cracked a grin. "I'll think about it. I'll see you when I get there."

Finley met Darian outside of the motel. Her hair was in a disarray. "thanks for coming to get me." She said as she got into the car. "it's no problem." He started up the car again. Finley smiled at him. "my sister sure knows how to pick them." She added with a wink. "your kind of cute." He laughed. "I won't be staying there a moment longer anyway. I heard that a position opened up with the fire station here. I thought about heading over there once I sobered up some." She nodded. "yeah the past lead fireman passed away tragically." Darian suddenly went quiet. "Don't tell her this but I was his brother." She eyed him. "I thought Charlie was his brother?" Darian nodded. "he is but I'm their older brother." Finley leaned back in her seat. "yeah I won't breathe a word to Penny. I don't want her to have a heart attack." The two of them sat in silence for a while. "she was really attached to your brother. The two of them barely began their relationship together." Whispered Finley. Darian kept quiet. "anyway I hope you get the job. I'm sure Station Officer Steele will love you."

The two of them arrived back at Penny's house. Darian walked in to find Penny half asleep on the couch. She could barely keep her eyes open. She had one hand on her dimple rubbing it gently. Her face was curled up in pain. "just keep drinking the coffee, it'll help with your hangover." Advised Darian. She just nodded. Her head falling past her hand. Darian caught her again. He laid her down on the couch. He put a blanket around her gently. "all you can really do is sleep it off." She just nodded at him. She drifted off to sleep. She snored rather loudly. Darian tip toed past her. "just let her rest." He whispered grabbing his bag. "I'll be back once I go and talk to Station Officer Steele." Finley smiled and giggled quietly. "I'll keep a good eye on her." She winked at him. Darian left the house.

He headed down to the station where he met Elvis. Elvis was busy cleaning up Jupiter. He turned around seeing Darian's reflection in the paintwork. "oh hello. I take it your Darian?" He offered his hand to Darian who took it. "yeah. I'm filling in for Sam. Is Station Officer Steele around?" Elvis nodded. "yep he's in his office. I think he's been waiting for you." Darian headed upstairs to the office. Station Officer Steele looked up from his paperwork. "ah there you are." Station Officer Steele got up from his desk. He shook hands with Darian. "sorry I'm late. I had to pick up a friend from Newtown." Steele smiled kindly. "Don't worry about it. I have a few things to discuss with you." The both of them sat down. "so, you were a former lead fireman for the Avra Valley Fire Department, right?" questioned Steele. Darian nodded. "yeah I was transferred out to Wales upon Firefighter Samuel Jones' death." Steele looked at his file a bit more. "so, I won't have to worry much about training then?" Darian took in a sharp breath. "I would be willing to do some refreshers, PontyPandy is not the same as Avra Valley." Steele nodded. "I'll arrange that with you. It'll probably be Boyce who does that with you. Now I must ask, how come Sam never told us about you?" Darian shrugged. "Sam loved to have his own little secrets." Steele put his file down on the table. "how soon can you start work?" he asked. "in about a week. I still have some unfinished business that I need to deal with."

Darian walked to the Whole Fish Café. He figured he would see his younger brother. Bronwyn heard the bell above her café door ring. She turned around. "Hello." She greeted. She then froze seeing Darian. "S-S-Sam?" Darian shook his head. "no Sam is deceased. I'm his older brother, Darian. I'm here to see Charlie, is he around?" She nodded. "yeah he's upstairs in the living room." Darian headed upstairs. Charlie was still remodeling the living room. He had most of the roof fixed. He sighed putting his hands on his hips. "need help?" he turned around. Darian was smiling. "I've got it thank you." Darian walked into the living room. Charlie sat down on the couch. "what can I do for you?" asked Charlie. "I came by to do some catching up. It's been awhile since I last stepped foot in PontyPandy."


	5. Chapter 5

Chapter Five:

Charlie leaned back on the couch. "I see that the twins have gotten bigger since the last time I saw them." Commented Darian as he lifted up one of the pictures off of the desk. "Yep, they've also become quite the handful." Chuckled Charlie. "but I wouldn't trade them for the world." Darian put the photo back down. "have you had any more trouble with Cousin Randol?" Charlie shook his head. "no he hasn't reared his head here since you and Sam last confronted him." Darian turned to face him. "you know there's a small chance he could come back right?" Charlie sighed. "that's what I'm afraid of. If he tries anything I'll be sure to let you know."

Finley woke up to her sister screaming downstairs. Finley ran out of the guest bedroom and quickly parkour'd over the top of the stairs. She landed on her feet. "Penny!" she yelled. Penny was sitting upright on the couch. She had the blanket clenched tightly in her hands. Finley jumped over the edge of the couch. "are you okay?" asked Finley. Penny shook her head. Finley pulled her sister into a tight hug. "you'll be okay sis." She comforted rubbing her shoulder. She rested her head on hers. "I saw him." Whispered Penny. "he was covered in ash. I tried to reach out to him but he turned into a demon and tried to kill me." Finley kissed her forehead gently. "try to get some rest Penny." Penny laid back down on her side. Finley stroked her hair back. Penny closed her eyes again.

The next day comes…

Penny was the first one up. She stood in front of her sink looking out the window. Darian came downstairs. He had his bag in his hand. "I'm heading out." She just nodded silently. He walked up behind her. "are you okay?" he asked. "I'm fine. I'm just having issues shaking off a nightmare I had last night. Other than that I'm just fine." He put his hand on her shoulder. "thanks for letting me stay a day with you at least." She looked up at him. "your sister told me that anytime a guy stays at your house you give them 24 hours." She feels her heart break. "oh, I see." She gulps. "do you have a place to stay at least?" he nodded. "yeah I'll be staying at Charlie's. He's offered to take me in until I can save up enough to live on my own again." She nodded. "take care." She whispered. He kissed her cheek. "I will." He pulled away from her. Penny watched him leave her house. She felt her heart fall down to her knees. She never felt this way towards anyone. She never wanted someone to stay with her so badly. She wanted to run out there and tell him that she wanted him to stay. She kept her hand down at her side. She let him go.

The week went by like any other week. Darian had started work at the Fire Station. He would swing by and check up on Penny whenever he got off shift. Darian looked out the window. He took a sip of his tea. Elvis tapped his shoulder. "see anything of interest out there?" he asked. Darian shook his head. "it's been so quiet today." Commented Arnold. He noticed that Darian appeared distracted. "something wrong Darian?" Darian snapped out of his thoughts. "no. I'm fine just tired is all." He sat down at the table. He put his cup down. "I just have a lot on my mind right now." Arnold leaned forward on his elbows. "Do tell." He pressed. "well have you ever fallen in love with someone?" questioned Darian. He tapped the side of his cup gently. "like she makes you feel something you've never felt before?" Arnold thought for a moment. "I think the concept of love is a bit foreign to me but I suppose so. Why?" Darian sighed. "I fell in love Penny. I know it's only been a week but..." Elvis touched his shoulder gently. "she reminds me a lot of my wife. The both of them are full of life, they know how to play the game with you, and they both know what losing something close to you is like." Elvis smiled at him. "then why don't you tell her how you feel?" he suggested. "that's the thing, I don't know how to put what I'm feeling into words. I don't know how to tell her that I love her." Arnold sat up. "then show her. Show her how much you love her." He suggested. "she'll understand either way." Darian leaned back in his chair. He thought a lot about Arnold had said.

Darian headed back to Charlie's after work. Bronwyn was downstairs cooking dinner. "welcome home Darian." She greeted. "I hope you don't mind but I've picked up your room." He sat down at the table. "It's no problem. I'm not going to be staying long." She smiled. "I know. You're going by to see Penny again aren't you?" she asked. Darian laughed. "you know me so well." She put his dinner down in front of him. "well at least eat." He began eating his dinner. Bronwyn cleaned up the kitchen. She took one look out the window. "you may want to keep yourself armed. I don't like the way it looks out there." Darian got up from the table. "I'll keep that in mind Bronwyn." He headed outside. He took the fastest route he could to Penny's house. He couldn't help but get creepy vibes. He noticed that there was someone standing a few feet off from Penny's house. He ducked into the bushes watching them. The shadow was checking out Penny's house. It avoided any contact with the light. The shadow got close to the front door. Darian charged out of the bushes. He tackled the shadow to the ground. The shadow wailed in pain.

Darian held the shadow down. "don't even think about it asshole." He growled. The shadow squirmed underneath him. Darian pulled his knife off of his belt. He put it to the shadow's throat. He removed the shadow's hood. Finley hissed at him. "the hell's your problem?!" she snapped. He let out a sigh of relief. He got off of her. "Sorry. I thought you were trying to break in." She put her hands on her hips." Kind of. I locked myself out of the house…again." He shook his head. He handed her the spare set he had. "you are a creepy stalker you know that?" mused Finley. "says the chick who locked herself out of the house.' He chuckled. Finley managed to get back onto her feet. "though for real though, I thought I heard someone moving around out here." He nodded. "you get inside. I'll check around in the yard." Finley walked into the house. Darian began doing his rounds. He didn't like the vibes he was getting. He reached for the flashlight that he kept on his belt. He flicked the light on. A narrow beam of white light shot out in front of him. He couldn't find anything out of the ordinary.

He was about to head back when suddenly he heard something on the other side of the fence. He made his way over there. A low cuss come out from inside one of the bushes. He jumped the fence, reached into the bush, and grabbed the trespasser by the back of their shirt. He yanked him up and over the fence. He then slammed the person on their side painfully. He got down on top of them. "alright punk who are you?" he snapped. The trespasser coughed looking at him…..

 _ **Many thanks for the reviews friends. I do appreciate each and every one that you send. Keep in mind my review schedule is a little weird. Normally I go about a week to maybe a couple of months without updates but I've gotten a little bit of my mojo back.**_

 _ **As always I hope you guys enjoy. Make sure to leave a helpful review or a suggestion. Keep my review section clean however by not posting reviews that ask for updates or when I am going to update things. Those who have reviewed my stories or read my stories before know my rules on that.**_

 _ **Adieu**_

 _ **Jameson Melonsworth**_


	6. Chapter 6

Chapter Six

The figure struggled underneath Darian. Darian shined his flashlight on him. He could make out the faint blonde hair on the boy. "the fuck you think you're doing snooping' around?" growled Darian. He pulled the boy to his feet before pinning him front first against the fence. "I wasn't doin' anything man!" exclaimed the boy. "I was walking around." Darian kept the boy's hands behind him. "yeah right. Hiding in the bushes isn't considered walking around when your trespassing." He shoved the boy forward a bit. "in to the house with you." He snapped. Darian stayed close behind the boy. He let the kid inside. "I found out who it was snooping around outside." Penny looked up at them both. "you had some punk ass kid "walking around" outside of the house." Darian closed the door shut. "why you gotta be in my business man?" whined the boy. "when you've become a danger to everyone else on the property you make it my business. Now do you have any parents?" questioned Darian as he took his cell phone out of his pocket. "maybe one of them can get your bitch ass." Penny coughed at Darian. "Don't be so hard on him. He may have just been curious is all. It's not like he was trying to break in." Darian handed his cell phone to the boy. "I ain't got nobody I can call." The boy said as he looked up at Darian. Darian backed up a bit. "not anyone who lives in this area at least." Penny touched the boy's hand. "then you can stay here with me. I'll make sure you don't get into any more trouble." The boy smiled at her. "I've got a room upstairs that you can use." He nodded. "by the way the name is Faron." Penny squeezed his hand gently. "I'm Penny." Faron pulled away from her. "I'll remember that Ms. Penny. Sorry if I caused so much trouble." She shook her head. "no, your fine dear." She leaned back on the couch. "have you eaten anything yet?" she asked. Faron shook his head. "no not really. I haven't really had anything to eat since I last left America." Penny raised an eyebrow. Something told her that he didn't come here legally. The boy's age told her that much. He barely had anything on him. "right well I'll go and fix you something then." She murmured as she got off the couch. Penny headed into the kitchen.

Darian sat down on the recliner. "How come you were walking around outside?" he questioned. Faron shrugged. "Don't know. Got lost I guess." Darian sighed. Faron shifted from toe to toe nervously. Penny returned a few minutes later. She gave him a plate that had a sandwich on it. "here. Why don't you take a seat in the living room?" she suggested. He nodded and headed off into the living room. Penny sat back down on the couch. "something isn't right about this." She whispered. Darian leaned in a bit. "what do you mean?" he asked. "look at him. I don't think he came here legally. It's either he ran away from somewhere or someone dumped him off here." Darian nodded. "I'll keep an eye on him. In the meantime, what are you going to do?" She shrugged. "I'm not sure. We'll have to find his parents. Someone is bound to be looking for him." That night Penny had fallen asleep on the couch again. Her hand dangled off the edge of the couch. Her sister trudged softly downstairs. She chuckled to herself finding Penny asleep on the couch. She decided to carry her sister upstairs to her own room. She tucked her sister in. "good night. Sleep well. No doubt you'll have a busy day ahead once you return to work." Finley turned to walk out of the room when she heard Penny mutter underneath her breath. She pulled the blanket over her head. Finley walked out of her sister's room closing the door behind her. Penny panted as she tossed and turned. Images of fire and smoke flashed in her head.

" _Help! Help!"_

 _Penny was searching through the flames. The whole building was coming down around her. She knew she didn't have long before she too would be trapped in the fiery embers. She heard the familiar voice cry out again. "Sam!" she yelled. She coughed on smoke. "Sam?!" She saw him standing in one corner of the room. She darted over to him only to recoil in shock. The ground under her had opened. The jagged edges stood up like sharp, jagged, ember teeth. She backed up some more. She tried to get a running start but it seemed like the hole gradually got bigger and bigger. "Sam don't worry I'll try and get you!" she ran forward at full speed. Her feet leaving the edge. She didn't have enough force to jump to the other side. She plummeted three stories downward with Sam watching her._

Penny woke up screaming. She looked around her room. She panted clenching the covers of her bed tightly. She put her face in her hands. She didn't know how she was supposed to focus on her duties tomorrow if she kept having reoccurring nightmares like that one every night. She laid back down onto the sheets. She managed to slow her breathing down. Her heart stopped racing in her chest. "that's it. I'm calling the therapist first thing in the morning." She muttered as she drifted off to sleep once more. Penny woke up again when her alarm went off. Her hand struggled to find the small phone. Her finger touched the smooth screen. She flicked the lock off to one side of the screen to disable the alarm. She grumbled sitting up again. She yawned and stretched before tossing the blankets back. She went to go past Faron's room when suddenly she heard music welling up through the crack in the door. He had her laptop on the bed. He was playing the "Pure Imagination Remix" by Dotan Negrin and Prismatic Mantis. He glanced up to see her staring at him. "oh hey." He greeted shutting the lid of the laptop. "Sorry I hope you didn't mind." She rubbed her eyes gently. "I wished you had come to ask me before you used it." He handed her the laptop back. "you were asleep and I figured I would use it to play some music." She nodded taking it. "not that I care but please make sure you ask." She said through a yawn. "rough night?" he questioned. She yawned again in reply. "Didn't sleep too well. Don't know how I'm going to get through shift." She looked at the clock. "ah well. It's too late to call in." she made her way downstairs with Faron behind her.

Darian was already at the fire station. He had the electronic clipboard in his hand. "let's see Jupiter appears to have everything but I'd better double check." He opened each one of the locker doors. He shook his head. "her fire extinguishers aren't in there." He put the clipboard down in the locker. The fire extinguishers were sitting near the lockers. He went over there and grabbed them. He put them back in Jupiter's storage locker. "there. Now it looks like she has everything." He murmured as he checked it off on the checklist. He felt his phone buzz quietly in his pocket. He tapped his Bluetooth headset that was sitting on his right ear. "go for Darian." He greeted. "hey Darian it's Charlie." He frowned hearing Charlie's panicked voice. "what's going on Charlie?" he asked. "he's back." Darian raised an eyebrow. He put the clipboard down on the bench. "who's back?" Charlie panted. He could hear the blinds suddenly move in the room Charlie was in. "my god. I wasn't expecting him to actually show his face again." Whimpered Charlie as he moved away from the window. "Darian, Randol is back. He's come back to finish the job."


	7. Chapter 7

Chapter Seven

Darian took in a sharp breath. "is he standing outside of your doorstep?" Darian was getting ready to grab his stuff out of his locker. "he was. Now he's moved on almost as if he's looking for someone or something." Darian nodded. "well sit tight. I'm getting ready to head over to your house now." Charlie sighed. "I'll try." Darian hung up on his brother. He borrowed Mercury from the fire station. He raced to Charlie's house. Randol was still swarming around the house. He growled seeing Darian pull up. He pulled out a small pistol putting a suppressor on it. He took aim at Darian. Darian barely got off of Mercury when suddenly the top of his shoulder had been blown off. Darian howled in pain holding his shoulder. Blood leaked through his fingers. He nearly fell of Mercury. Bronwyn heard the gun shot and quickly got down behind the counter. Her heart was racing inside of her chest. She called for Charlie. "stay there Bronwyn." He ordered. "I'm going outside to check." He rushed outside to see Darian on the ground holding his shoulder. Charlie knelt down beside him. Randol took aim again. He fired another round. "Charlie!" yelled Darian. He pushed his brother down underneath him. He shielded his brother by taking the bullet straight through the side of his hips. Darian grimaced in pain. Randol tried firing another shot only to come up with an empty barrel. He darted off underneath the bushes before he could be seen. Charlie caught Darian in his arms. He put press on his wounds. "No no." whispered Charlie. "Bronwyn!" he shouted. Bronwyn ran outside. "call for Nurse Flood! Get help!" he begged. She nodded and headed back inside. Darian's eyes were beginning to flutter shut. He coughed and wheezed. Pain shot through him. "Charlie…" he rasped. Charlie took off his yellow jumper and used it to put pressure on Darian's hip wound. "I'm not going to lose you." Whispered Charlie. Darian blacked out under his hands.

Darian woke up several hours later at the hospital. His eyes fluttered open. He was greeted by extremely bright light. He groaned opening his eyes up fully. "where am I?" he asked. He saw the I.V hooked up to his wrist. He shivered feeling the cold air hit him suddenly as he sat up. Penny heard Darian moving around. She sniffed waking up from her nap. "you're in the hospital." She replied as she rubbed her eyes. Darian winced feeling his side. "you were admitted for bullet wounds." He tried getting out of bed. He winced again when his hip twitched painfully. "is Charlie okay?" Penny nodded. "yeah. Him and Bronwyn are safe. They're more concerned about seeing you recover." He sighed laying back down on the bed. Penny got up from her chair. She walked over to him. She laced her hand around his. "I'd have to admit I was worried about you too." Darian squeezed her hand gently. He brought her down on top of him. Penny gasped out in surprise. His hands moved down her sides. She shivered under his touch. "really? We're going to do it here?" she chuckled. He laughed at her. "I would love but, I have a tube shoved up my ass." She touched the side of his face. "Listen Penn there's something I've been meaning to tell you." He whispered getting serious. She sat up a bit on her elbows. "I know we've been together for a week and all but I'm really starting to take a shine to ya. I think I might even have a crush on you." She smiled. "How about once I get out of here, you and I go on a date?" he suggested. She nodded. "alright I'll give you a shot." She kissed his cheek. She laid down by him. Darian put his good arm around her. "I just hope the wardens let me out of here soon." He muttered.

Penny fell asleep curled up against his arm. For once in her life, she actually slept without having a nightmare. Instead her dream had a happy ending with her and Darian being together. She muttered happily in her sleep. Darian rolled his eyes as he laid his head on his pillow. He watched her sleep from the corner of his eye. He rolled over onto his side. He still kept an arm around her slender body. Penny moved in protest. She spun around to face him. He smiled. He then turned over to face her. "there. Better?" he smirked. He got a low mutter as a reply. He held her close. Her body heat was enough to lure him to sleep.

 _Penny woke up back in her house. She looked around her bedroom. "I'm glad to see your finally awake." Came a voice. Sam walked into her room. "what am I doing here?" she asked. "well a dream has to start, somewhere right?" He leaned against the wall. She took his hand. "I miss you." She whispers. He kisses the top of her head. "I miss you too. Penny, I don't hate you for what happened to me." He looked down at her. "all I care about now is that your safe." He ran his thumb under her cheek. She leaned in his touch. "I've got to go now. Try to sleep easy Penny."_

Darian was released from the hospital later that afternoon. Penny was upstairs getting ready for their date. She put on a nice blouse and a pair of dress pants. She had her hair slicked back. Darian knocked on her bedroom door. "ready?" he asked. She nodded. He took her hand in his. "Finley is watching Faron, don't worry." He said answering the question before Penny even had a chance to ask. "I made sure the house was safe for the evening too." He added. She leaned on his shoulder. "how are your wounds feeling?" He shrugged. "I'll live." Darian helped her into the car. He then got in on the driver's side. Penny could tell he was nervous about going with her. She tried her best to hide her amusement knowing that he was trying his best to impress her. Darian took Penny up to Newtown for dinner. The two of them decided to eat at a nice restaurant in the high-end part of town. The waitress walked off after taking their orders. "so, what do you think?" he asked. Penny smiled. "it's nice. I've never been here before." Darian fiddled with his napkin. "it's one of the few places I go to from time to time. The staff here are really nice and the food is excellent." Penny looked out the window. "so, what was he like?" Penny glanced up at Darian. "my brother, I mean." Darian looked down. Penny tilted her head to the side. "he's your brother you should already know what he's like." He sighs. "I hadn't really known him all that well. His death came as a surprise to me so I really don't know too much about him." Penny frowned. "well he always stuck his neck out for people. He was never a man who put himself first. He cared for his family and friends." She smiled to herself recalling the memories she had of him. "he was very brave." Darian nodded. "it's hard trying to fill his shoes ya know?" He put his hands together. "Station Officer Steele expects me to be just like him but I'm not. I was lucky to get to where I am now." She takes his hands gently. "your brother has told me to tell you that he's proud of what you've become." She whispers. He looks up at her. The two locked eyes. "really?" She nodded. "he knows you still have a long way to go still but he's proud that you haven't given up." Darian cracked a grin. The waitress came back with their food.

After dinner, Penny and Darian walked together down the Newtown Strip. Penny glanced at the displays each one of the stores had. "it's a rather beautiful night." She mused. Darian put his arm around her. She leaned against his side. He bent down to kiss her. His lips met hers gently. She closed her eyes letting him explore her. His tongue ran across hers. She leaned more into the kiss before pulling away breathlessly.


	8. Chapter 8

Chapter Eight

Darian and Penny returned home to find the house sitting in complete darkness. Darian had Penny wait for him by the front door. Blood roared in his ears making it harder for him to hear what was in his environment. He drew his switchblade from his belt. Everything happened in slow motion. He found the door to Finley's room open. He poked his head slightly inside. He heard Finley snoring softly on her bed. He could also make out Faron's small outline next to her. He let out a sigh of relief. He headed downstairs. "they're both asleep." He whispered. She nodded. She wrapped her arms around his waist. He kissed her on the lips. She pressed her body against his earning herself a small moan from him. He took her upstairs to her bedroom. He sat on the bed letting her climb into his lap. The both began to make out. She ran her fingers through his hair. He put his arms around her waist dragging her close to him. He reached for the hem of her shirt yanking it upwards. He ran his hands over her chest. She moaned softly. He unclipped her bra tossing it off to the side. He then finished taking her shirt off. She pushed him down on the sheets. She slid her pants down allowing him to touch her. He flipped over keeping her underneath him. He took his clothes off tossing them down on the floor next to hers. Penny rocked her hips along with his. She buried her face in his neck. Her body ravished by powerful waves of pleasure. He brought her to her climax without even trying. They did it about four times before collapsing out of exhaustion. He laid down by her. She cuddled against his bare chest. She fell asleep on his chest.

The next morning came,

Penny woke up with the blankets tucked around her. She smelled breakfast being made downstairs. She tossed the blankets off her body. Darian had her breakfast all made up for her. He was in high spirits from their one night stand. He heard Penny coming down the stairs. He smiled turning around. "good morning love." There was a light purr in his voice. She returned his smile. "morning." She sat at the table. "figured you would like something to eat before we went to work." He put hers down in front of her. "someone is in a good mood." She mused. He nodded. He leaned against the table watching her. "I had a nice time last night." He said. She put her fork down once she finished eating. "me too." She got up from the table. "just give me a moment to get dressed then we'll head out. I've got to check on Finley and Faron." He nodded. "take your time love."

Penny headed back upstairs. She quickly tossed on her work clothes. She quickly checked on both Finley and Faron. They were still sleeping together silently. She closed the door quietly before heading downstairs again. Darian put on his jacket. "you may want to bundle up this morning, it's rather chilly outside." Penny grabbed her jacket off the wall. She put it over her arm. "let's go." She murmured. Darian and Penny walked to the fire station. Elvis was cooking Ellie and Arnold breakfast. "Good morning you three." Greeted Penny. Ellie looked up from the magazine she was reading. "morning Penny. Hey Darian." Darian sat down on the couch. Penny joined her friend Ellie at the table. "so, I heard you and Darian went on a date last night. How was it?" asked Ellie as she leaned forward on her hands. "it was excellent. Him and I had a nice time last night." Replied Penny. "good. It's about time you started enjoying yourself again." Ellie punched her lightly on the shoulder. "I'm glad to see you're feeling better." Darian listened on their conversation. He smiled to himself. Just then the alarm went off. "fire at PontyPandy Forest. Trevor and the kids have been cornered by the flames." Darian took off ahead of his colleagues. He slid down the pole first. Station Officer Steele selected Jupiter and Venus from the tablet upstairs. Darian clipped on his helmet. He turned to his colleagues. "we'll need to take Jupiter and Venus. Penny and Ellie, you take Venus. Arnold you're with me in Jupiter." Ellie saluted Darian. "You got it boss!" Penny climbed into Venus first followed by Ellie. Penny waited for Darian to pull out of the fire station before following after him. Darian could see the pillar of smoke rising in the distance. He gunned the engines hoping that they would make it in time.

Trevor kept the kids away from the flames. He smiled hearing Jupiter's siren. Darian and the crew quickly got set up. Penny and Darian handed off their oxygen tags to Ellie. She put them into the electronic clipboard. "firefighter Penny oxygen 100%, firefighter Darian oxygen 100%" Darian turned to Arnold. "once Penny and I dosh a path I want you to go in and get everyone to safety." Arnold nodded and saluted them. Darian and Penny hosed down a path for Arnold to use. He guided Trevor and the kids to safety. He then helped his teammates put out the rest of the fire. "thanks for the help guys." Said Trevor. "you really should be careful when dealing with Campfires, Trevor." Darian turned around to face him. "that's the thing the fire just quickly spread around us. It wasn't caused by our campfire." Darian raised an eyebrow. Penny tilted her head to the side. She looked up at Darian. "that's odd." Commented Ellie. Arnold checked the trees. "and it wouldn't be caused by spontaneous combustion. It's the dead middle of Winter." Added Arnold. Darian thought for a moment. "we'll investigate once Trevor and the kids are safely out of the way. You may want to head to PontyPandy." Trevor nodded. "right well we'll see you later then." Trevor took the kids back home. Darian checked around the campsite again. "something isn't right about this." He whispered. "it's like the café fire. No known case was found at the site." He observed. He put some of the blackened ash into a plastic bag. "I'm going to send this off to Cardiff to be examed." Darian got up from the ground. He put the plastic bag into the glove compartment. Penny touched his shoulder. "I don't think Station Officer Steele will be too happy about there not being a cause." He sighed. "I know but there's nothing more we can do about it. Have Ellie and Arnold double check to make sure that the fire is out all the way before they head back to the station." She nodded. Darian climbed into Jupiter. He looked out the windshield. "two fires with unknown cases." He muttered under his breathe. He was getting very twisted vibes about all of this. He just shook his head before starting Jupiter up. Penny climbed up inside of Jupiter. "they'll make sure that the site is safe before they leave." She said. He just nodded before pulling away from the site.

Darian sat on the couch once they got back. He was still in a daze about the fires. "something just doesn't add up. What are the odds that it could be done by the same person?" he wondered. He looked at the sample in his hand. "this was the same color as the ash found at Bronwyn's café." He sighed. He took notes in his journal. "it could be dumb luck but I don't like the vibes I'm getting from this." He put the bag and his findings into a box. He addressed the sample to Cardiff Labs. He headed downstairs to the mail box that sat outside of the fire station. He dropped the package down in it and raised the red flag up. He then headed back inside.

 _ **I hope you guys are enjoying the story so far. I'm always open to suggestions in terms of where I should take the story. Do please take some time to review I enjoy the feedback.**_

 _ **Adieu**_

 _ **Melonsworth**_


	9. Chapter 9

Chapter Nine

Three days go by,

Penny woke up sick. She moaned laying on her side. She hadn't been able to move comfortably this morning. She held her stomach. Finley knocked on her door. "you okay?" she asked. Penny shook her head. "no. Can you do me a favor and call Station Officer Steele? Just tell him I won't be coming in today." Finley took two steps away from the door. "alright but I'll be back. You may want to do a pregnancy test." Finley headed downstairs. Penny dragged herself out of bed. She went into the bathroom. Her hands fumbled to get the cabinet open. She pulled out a small box that sat underneath the sink. She had been holding onto this test for a while, ever since Sam was with her. She took the test and paled. "h-h-how?" she asked. "Finley!" she yelled. Her sister trotted quickly up the stairs. Penny held the positive pregnancy test in her hand. "are you okay?" asked Finley noticing the lack of color in her sister's face. "it's positive." Finley grinned. "but…how?" questioned Penny. "they said I was going to have issues getting pregnant." Finley shrugged. "Don't know. Maybe it was pure luck." She hugged her sister. "congrats. I would let Darian know though." Penny took in a shaky breath. "Do you think he would stay if he knew the kid was his?" Finley rubbed her back. "he'd better. After all he decided to stick his rod into you." Penny nodded. She grabbed her cellphone off the night stand. She rang Darian. Darian heard his cell phone go off. He put the lab results down on the table before picking up. "go for Darian." He greeted. "hey Darian I have something to tell you." Penny's voice shook as she continued talking. "I'm pregnant." Darian's world spun. He went silent on the line for a while. "your…what?" he questioned. "I'm pregnant." Said Penny again. He gulped. "well then. This is most certainly a shocker." He began laughing. "you're not mad." He shook his head. "no how could I be? I'm just in shock. I've been a father before." He smiled. "I'll see you once I get home." Penny relaxed. "alright dear, please be careful." He leaned back in the chair. "I will. Don't worry." He hung up putting his cell phone down on the table. He picked up the lab results again. "it figures the ash came back with traces of gasoline. At least that narrows down the tool used for fire." He sighed putting his face in his hands. "it still doesn't tell me who caused the fire."

He put the lab results into his bag. He figured he would go back to investigate the site again. He drove out to the campfire site which had been cleaned up. He checked around the trees again. The bark was still blackened from the fire. His gaze fell upon a footprint sitting by the tree close to him. He bent down to investigate it. He rubbed the dirt between his fingers. "someone has been here. This footprint wasn't caused by Trevor, the kids, or anyone on the team." He ran a small white brush over the footprint. The brush picked up black speckles from the print on the ground. He put the brush into a plastic bag. "I'll send this one off too but I may conduct the test myself." He tucked the plastic bag into his pocket. He pulled out his phone taking a picture of the footprint. He drove back to the station. "everything okay?" asked Station Officer Steele once he arrived. "yeah everything is fine. I went back out the site just now to see if I could find anything more about the fire. I got the lab results back from Cardiff. They found that the ash had traces of gas in it so that gives us the tool of choice. We still need to match the tool to the person." Station Officer Steele nodded. "I have a picture of a footprint that I'm going use when I do a test over the sample I found at the site." Darian handed Steele Jupiter's keys. "in the meantime, I'm off to see Penny."

Penny was lying in bed. She heard someone walk into her room. She sat up to see Darian. "hey." He greeted. She smiled hugging him. "How are you feeling?" She sighed. "tired mostly. I haven't vomited yet which is good." He kissed the top of her head. "I'm just glad you're okay." He whispered. He rubbed her back. "now I don't want you to work yourself too much. If you do work, I want you to do light stuff." She nodded. She leaned against his chest. She hummed to herself quietly. Darian held her tighter. "I love you." She whispered. He smiled. "I love you too." He laid her back down. She cuddled down on the sheets. He tucked her back in. He headed downstairs leaving Penny to rest peacefully. Finley had taken Faron out for the day so he was left in the living room by himself. This gave him enough time to examine the foot dust he had gotten. He put his bag down on the couch and opened it up. He took out a microscope from his bag. He placed the microscope on the table gently. He put some of the dust into a film. He then put the film into the tray of the microscope. He looked carefully through the lenses of the microscope. He could make out boot fibers under the lens. He turned on the stage light. "so whoever, did this was wearing a boot. Maybe I can get some DNA from the sample." He looked up. He grabbed a cotton swab out of his bag. He then swabbed the sample. "I'm going to send these back to the lab." He whispered. He put the samples into a bag. He put the bag into his duffle bag closing it. He then cleaned up the mess in the kitchen.

Penny woke up an hour later. She found Darian asleep on the couch. She smiled as she quietly tip-toed past him. She decided to go out on a walk. Little did she know that Randol was watching her. A snake-like smile spread across his lips. He rolled in behind her. His arms went across her mouth cutting her ability to scream off. Penny felt her world go black. She blacked out in his arms. Randol dragged her limp body off. He shoved her into the back of his car before driving off.

 _ **Thanks to those who view and review. I really do appreciate the support. Do keep the reviews coming I do enjoy the commentary that I get. As I've said the favorite part of any fireman sam story is the review section.**_

 _ **Adieu**_

 _ **Melonsworth**_


	10. Chapter 10

Chapter Ten

Penny woke up. She had a weird taste in her mouth. She coughed loudly gagging from the powder that sat on her tongue. She heard laughing coming up from the rafters above her. "I'm glad to see your finally awake my dear." Cooed an icy voice. Penny made out a shadow in the light. A light trail of cigarette smoke floated up behind the light. "who are you?" she rasped. The voice laughed again. "that's not important however, what is important is your role in the coming days." She saw the figure move out of the light. "you are going to be my ticket to attracting Darian here." Randol walked down the stairs. He grabbed an I.V. machine and pushed it closer to Penny. She struggled seeing it. He grabbed her arm. He then stabbed the I.V. needle deep into her arm. He turned the machine one. The I.V. began pumping a strange liquid into Penny's blood stream. Penny called out in pain. Her veins began burning. She squirmed in pain struggling to try to get out of the chair. She blacked out from the pain. Finley had gotten home. "hey Darian." She greeted. Darian looked up at her. "Hey." She walked up to him. "have you seen Penny? She hasn't answered her phone." He frowned. "I just saw her upstairs." He got up. He trotted up the stairs to see if she was okay. He found her room empty. Finley looked past his shoulder. "she isn't here and it's starting to get late." His heart began missing beats. "we need to look for her. Call the fire service."

The fire brigade showed up at the house a few minutes later. Ellie, Arnold, and Elvis ran up to the door with Radar. Darian let Radar sniff Penny's jacket. "go find her boy. She's carrying my child." Radar took several whiffs of the jacket. He then raced out of the house. The rest of the gang followed in behind him. Radar followed the trail up to an old forest. The trees were withered and blackened. "the trail must lead to somewhere very creepy." Grimaced Ellie. Arnold rolled her eyes. "it's highly unlikely that we will discover a visitor from the outside. You have nothing to worry about Ellie." Darian just shook his head. "stay here you three. If I need backup, I'll call you." He took Radar's leash. Radar whimpered. He hesitated on going any further. "it's alright boy you can stay here if you want." Radar looked up at his handler. He parked his butt down on the ground. Darian proceeded off into the woods by himself. The path stretched underneath the cover of the blackened trees. Darian couldn't help but feel dreadful. Whoever took Penny didn't want anyone to get too close to them. Penny woke up as the effects of the sedative began to wear off. Her skin burned from the fluid that had been forced into her veins. She coughed turning her head to the side. A surgical light swung high above her. The tiled walls were covered in blood. Dark liquid dripped down from the ceiling. She tried to sit up but found it hard to. She couldn't feel any part of her body at all. She heard the faint sound of a glove being snapped against a wrist somewhere in the dark. "glad to see your finally awake my dear." The voice purred again. Randol pushed a surgical tray closer to her. "you and I are going to have a bit of fun. Now that the numbing medicine has done its job, it's time for me to make the procedure." Penny found it hard to get any words out. He tapped the tip of the blade he had in his hand. "Now shall I get started?" he sneered looking at her. Penny gulped painfully. He lifted the hem of her shirt. He eyed a spot on her stomach. He plunged the knife deep into her flesh causing her to let out a scream. Penny soon blacked out again.

Darian heard screaming coming from the house further up the path. He quickly picked up the pace. He kicked the front door down. "Penny!" he yelled. He was met by the faint smell of blood. He took a staircase going down into the basement. Classical music played followed by the sound of something being cut. "wake up my dear you've fallen asleep." Cooed the voice again. Randol looked in Darian's direction. "oh, and it would appear I have an audience. I'll have to go dear." He gave Penny a small kiss before running off. Darian rushed into the room. He cut Penny free of her restraints. She was bleeding badly from the stomach. "Darian…the baby…" She rasped. She blacked out in his arms. Darian put pressure on her wound. Darian rushed her out of the house. He got on his radio. "Darian to Ellie. Darian to Ellie. Come in Ellie." He got static back on the radio. "shit." He grumbled under his breath. He knew he had to keep going. His shoulder was getting wet from Penny's blood. He attempted the radio again as he got about halfway through the forest. "I hear you loud and clear, Darian. Did you find her?" came Ellie's voice over the radio. "yeah but she's in critical condition. We'll need to get her to Nurse Flood's." He put his radio back on his chest. He kept a steady arm around Penny's waist. "we'll have Nurse Flood on standby." Darian finally made it out of the woods. Helen's ambulance finally arrived at the scene. She took out the gurny out from behind her ambulance. He helped Darian lay Penny down onto it. "I have to get those wounds stabilized. Do me a favor and get my med kit from the back." Darian ran around to the back. He grabbed her med kit from the back. He then ran back to her. Helen opened her med kit. She took out a set of bandages. She wrapped them around Penny's stomach gently. Penny was halfway between conscious and unconscious. "try to stay with me Penny." Whispered Helen.

Penny couldn't stay awake. She was choking for a breath. Helen loaded Penny up into her ambulance and rushed off with her. Darian turned to the rest of the team. "I found her in an old surgeon's house just up ahead on the path. You guys head back to the station with Radar. I'm going to investigate the house." Ellie nodded. "please come home safely." She whispered. Darian nodded. He headed back down the path. He hoped Penny would be okay. He wanted to see if he could find any clues as to who had Penny. The house echoed with the sounds of the wind blowing around outside. He could still smell blood coming from downstairs. He turned on his flashlight. The house sat in complete darkness. His heart pounded in his chest. A part of him did not want to be in the house. Bloody footprints made a trail on the tile floor near the staircase. Darian followed the footprints downstairs. The only light Darian had to see was from his flashlight. He took a picture of the footprints with his phone. The scalpel laid on the bed. Darian grabbed it. "I'm going to dust this for finger prints." The lights suddenly came on. "I don't think you'll be doing anything captain." Randol was standing up in the rafters again. He slowly clapped. "well done. I see that the girl's scream has brought you to my little humble home." A snake-like smile played up on his lips. Darian growled. "Randol." Randol leaned forward on the railing. "well hello Darian come to take care of your dear cousin Randol?" he sneered. Darian reached for the knife on his belt. The floor suddenly came alive with electricity. Darian howled in pain and fell on the floor. He was jolted by more electricity. Randol pushed the lever down again. "and here I thought we were bonding." Darian moaned softly. He curled up into a ball. "I guess not. Your just like your older brother, Sam." He pushed the lever up again administering another shock. Darian cried out in pain. He couldn't get up. Randol turned the electric floor off. Darian panted. He eyed his cousin darkly. "there's no hope of escape for you." Laughed Randol. "Your going to suffer the same fate as your girlfriend but for now I'm going to enjoy this little game of cat and mouse. Adieu dear cousin." Darian was met by silence once more.

"Darian! Darian!" shouted a voice. His eyes slowly opened. He saw Elvis and Ellie both looking at him. His eyes could make out their outlines in the pale orange light. Darian twisted his head to the side. "how long was I out?" he questioned. "about four hours. We got worried so we came to find you." Darian sat up slowly. His head rang and spun. He winced holding his head. "let's get out of here." He muttered. Elvis helped Darian to his feet. "Did you find out who took Penny?" he asked. Darian's mind was a little fuzzy. "no. I didn't. I felt someone knock me out before I even had a chance to look behind me." Ellie checked Darian's head. "we need to get you to Helen's so she can take a look at your head." Darian tried to nod but it only made his headache worse.


	11. Chapter 11

_**Warning the following content in this story is not suitable for those who suffer from: kakoneirophobia (the fear of nighmares). This story also has content not suitable for viewers who suffer from: hemophobia (the fear of blood) viewer discretion is advised.**_

Chapter Eleven

 _Penny woke up in a bed covered in white. She couldn't feel the IV or wires that were hooked up to her anymore. She felt at peace. She heard the door to the room opened. She sat up to see Sam wearing a white button down shirt and white pants. His ginger hair had been slicked back. His blue eyes showed a bit of danger in them. "Sam?" she asked. She reached out for him. "why am I here?" He hugged her gently. "I have no idea." He whispered. She looked up at him. He bent down to kiss her. He felt too real to her. She was worried that this was all the work of the halogenic drug that was flowing in her system. His body was really warm to her. She pulled him in tighter. "I've been waiting for this for so long Sam." Tears welled up in her eyes. "to have a chance to finally be with you." She felt something fall on her shoulder. "Sam?" she noticed that he began to slowly melt in her hands. The room was quickly turning red. She let out a scream letting him go. His boney hand caught the back of her hospital gown. "No! You aren't going to go from me again!" he snapped. The floor bubbled in burning blood. Penny screamed out in pain. She wanted to escape his grasp so badly. "your coming with me! We're meant to be together!" his voice slowly got more and more distorted. She couldn't escape him. The blood was dragging her down by the ankles. She struggled and screamed more. "rehtegot eb ot tnaem er'ew" His words suddenly spoke in reverse order._

Penny's increased heart rate caused the alarm on her heart monitor to go off. One of the nurses injected her with a fluid that made her wake up. Penny panted sitting up right but even then she could still see the visions of blood. The nurse looked like a skeleton. Penny let out a scream and closed her eyes. The nurse quickly held Penny down. "Ms. Morris! Ms. Morris! Your okay." Comforted the nurse. Penny opened her eyes again to see everything had returned to normal. Her breathing slowed. She burst out into tears. "it seemed so real." She whispered. "we found traces of a powerful halogen in your system. It seems to not want to leave your system that easily." Penny laid back down on the bed. "Darian. Where is he?" The nurse helped her settle down. "we can give him a call if you want." She suggested. Penny nodded. "please he's the father of my child." Darian heard his cellphone go off. He picked it up wincing. "Hello?" he greeted. "Hello? Mr. Jones? Penny has woken up. She wants to speak with you if she could." He let out a sigh of relief. "put her on the phone." The nurse handed the phone to Penny. "Darian?" Darian sat up on the couch. "Penny I'm so happy to hear your voice again." He heard her crying on the other end of the phone. "nothing I see is real." She whispered. Darian frowned. "baby you have to hold in there. I'm real. The hospital is real. Your real." He sat up a bit more on the couch. He clenched the phone close to his ear. "Sam…he's ill." Penny sobbed. "baby he's been dead for awhile. He isn't real. Randol is using him to hurt you. Don't feed into those hallucinations." Penny sniffed. "if you give me about an hour or so I'll be at the hospital soon with your sister and Faron." She nodded but he couldn't see it. "please stay on the phone with me." She begged. Darian's heart broke. Randol had hurt Penny in the worse way possible. "I will." He promised.

Darian made his way to the hospital. He had hung up the phone. He walked into Penny's hospital room. He quickly tossed his arms around her. "shh baby." He comforted. He rocked her back and forth. "You'll be okay. I won't let him hurt you anymore." He kissed the top of her head. Penny buried her face in his neck. She soon fell asleep again in his arms. She was meant by the same fate only to have Sam change phrases on her:

 _Ecivres evitaerc fo yoj eht suoenaropmetnoc swonk modles snoitareneg erutuf yb edam eb lliw stnemurtsni esob fo sesu sseltnuoc. Thgir era uoy htworg tnalp no srezilitref fo sepyt suoirav fo ecneulfni eht etacidni ot stnemirepxe yrotarobal kciuq meht fo emos yolpme ot elbissop ylisae eb ton ti dluow. Smsinahcem suolevram ruoy fo esu relluf yb dedeep ton si tnempoleved larutlucirga ssam that elbatnemal si ti, ris_

Penny woke up screaming again. Darian held her close. She panted leaning against his chest. He rubbed her back. "he came to see me in my dreams again. This time his words were warped and he spoke backwards. I couldn't make out what he was saying." He kissed the top of her head. "it seems like this nightmare never ends." She begins shaking in his arms. "it's like he corrupted Sam." Darian did small circles with his hand on her back. "we'll get through this Penny." He whispered. "you have my word on that."

Penny had slowly gotten worse. She got to the point of not being able to sleep. She stayed downstairs with the lights all on. She had stack after stack of notebooks filled with the same speech she kept hearing in her head. She etched it all over her table. Darian walked downstairs. "Penn?" he asked. "Penny?" She kept her back to him. Darian's heart rate picked up. He touched her shoulder only to have her jump. "it's just you." She sighed. She put a hand on her heart. "Penny I'm getting worried about you." He pulled her into a hug. "I know your worried. I can't get what I saw out of my head. I'm afraid of falling asleep." Darian sighed. "Don't be. Come on let's head to bed." He carried her upstairs. "the Joy of Creative service. What did Sam mean by that?" she asked. He looked at her again. "he keeps repeating the same speech backwards. I was just now able to decode it." He frowned. "I don't know and I don't like it." He laid her down on the bed. "wait here." He muttered. He headed downstairs again. He took awhile before going back upstairs again. He had made her a cup of tea. It was laced with a sedative that was going to help her sleep. Penny took a sip of the tea. She recoiled in disgust. "what did you put in the tea?" she questioned. "it's a sleeping agent." He replied. "the sedative made the tea bitter." He took the empty cup from her. "sorry but it should help a bit." Penny laid back down on the bed. After a few minutes the sedative slowly started to take effect. She relaxed enough to go to sleep.

Darian sighed watching her. "Something isn't right about this." He murmured. He decided to clean the house up a bit to take his mind off of the situation. Finley handed him one of the notebooks that Penny had written in. "you may want to see this." He nodded taking it from her. He opens it up to see some pretty nightmarish images. He frowns. "this has to stop." He puts the notebook into his bag. "I'm going to head to Cardiff. I have a detective up in that area I can see about all of this. He knows a mental specialist who can help us with this." Finley nodded. "please be careful. I'll keep an eye on her and let you know if anything changes."


	12. Chapter 12

Chapter Twelve:

Cardiff University sits in Downtown Cardiff close to a Cathedral. The University houses about 4,000 students currently with a small number of staff. Darian pulled up outside of the University. Headed to the Campus Security to see Detective Rhydd and Professor Yale. He kept his findings and clippings from Penny's notebooks in a folder. "what brings you into my office, Darian?" asked Rhydd as he leaned back in his chair. "I was hoping you could help create a case against my cousin." Rhydd sighed. "you're talking to the wrong person Darian. I just work Campus Security." Darian tapped the table gently. "Rhydd you're the only one that can help me and my family. He's tormenting Firefighter Morris by psychological means. I need some sort of solution in order to stop this." Rhydd rubbed the top of his forehead. "look just leave what you have with me and I'll see what I can do. I'll call you once I find someone who can take your case." He shook hands with Darian. Darian went back out to his car. He sat behind the wheel sighing. "that didn't get anywhere." He muttered. He started his car up. He decided to get something to eat before he made the trip back to PontyPandy. He sat down at a table in the restaurant. The waitress came by his table. "what can I get you today handsome?" she asked. "a beer and a burger." He replied. She nodded writing it down. "I take it you had a tough day today eh?" He sighed. "you have no idea. It's been a rather rough week with my girlfriend having nightmares." She tsked softly at him. "sorry to hear that. Well I hope the rest of the week gets better for you. If I may ask where are you from?" Darian smiled kindly at her. "I'm from PontyPandy." She smiled back at him. "I'll have your order out soon." He nodded at her. He pulled out his phone. He began playing one of his games on it.

The bartender turned to the TV behind him. He turned it on flickering it to one of the games that was playing. It was a Wales V Ireland soccer match. Darian scoffed under his breathe. "Wales is screwed. Northern Ireland has the upper hand." One of the patrons turned around. "how about you shut your bloody mouth there chap? Fucking Irish dog." Darian looked up at him. "that comment wasn't pointed at you mate." The patron got up slamming his fist down on the table. "but you had the nerve to talk such rubbish about our home team! You're not a true person of Wales if you support the Irish." Another patron rolled his eyes. "come off it mate. Let the man support whatever he wants." The angry patron stalked off to his corner. He was glaring daggers into Darian the entire time. The waitress came back with his food. "I'll be back with your beer." Darian nodded. He took a bite of his burger. He kept thinking about what he had seen in the file. He sighed to himself. The waitress came back. "you know if you're looking for a good time why don't you hit the local bar around the corner? There's a full-scale party going on because of today's game." She suggested. Darian smiled. "I'll head there once I've finished eating." She put his beer down on the table. Darian took a sip of it. He heard his phone buzzing quietly on the table. It was Finley that was calling him. "hey Darian I'd figured I would give you a call on what you found out." Darian gritted his teeth. He wasn't sure how to tell Finley about the dead end he got to. "I dropped off with file with the detective. I'm hoping to hear something from him hopefully by tomorrow." Finley put her knife down. "sounds like you've had a rather rough day. Penny has had outbursts here and there. She's still talking a bunch of nonsense." Darian shook his head. "take her down to Helen's. See if she knows someone that can come up with a suppressor for that halogenic." He heard something crash in the background. "Penny?" asked Finley. He then listened to Finley's breathing pick up. "Penny put that knife down. Put the knife down." She ordered. He heard screaming then the line going dead. He dropped his cell phone in surprise. The waitress noticed Darian getting up from the table suddenly. "Sorry I've got to go." He muttered. He quickly left the restaurant.

Darian got in his car. He sped as fast as he could back to PontyPandy. It was about dawn before he got back. Faron was waiting for him outside. "Darian, you have to help Finley." He begged. "Penny just attacked her out of nowhere." Darian rushed inside. He saw Finley holding her side on the floor. She moaned softly in pain. "Darian." She croaked. He knelt next to her. He took her hand in his. "Fin hang in there." Finley coughed up blood. It leaked down the side of her jaw. "you need to help Penny. Her reality has been shattered or rewritten in some sort of freaky way." She leaned against his chest. Darian picked Finley up gently. "I'm getting you out of here and then I'm looking for Penny." Finley laid her head on his shoulder. He laid her down across the back seat of his car. Faron got in on the passenger side. Darian then quickly got into his car and pulled away from the house. Finley could barely keep her eyes open. All she remembered was them driving down the street on their way to Helen's. Darian didn't want to take Finley to the hospital for the fear of Penny possibly finding her there. He parked outside of Helen's house. Faron darted up to the front door. He pounded on it heavily. Helen poked her head out. "Faron?" She looked up seeing Darian with a wounded Finley. "bring her inside. Don't explain just bring her in." Darian laid Finley down on the couch. Helen pulled her med kit out from behind the counter. She took the bandages out of it. She wrapped them around Finley gently. She tightened the bandages with clips. "there you go. Now tell me what happened." Finley sighed. She didn't know how to tell Helen what happened. "my sister…she's gone crazy." Finley coughed. "I had just rung Darian when she attacked. She kept spouting nonsense of some sort. She yanked out the knife on the table before I had a chance to do anything about it." Helen frowned. "that seems odd of her to do." Darian crossed his arms. "it's the halogenic. I think it's really taken." Helen looked up at him. She saw his fists clenched tight on his jacket sleeves. "that bastard." He snapped.

Finley slept peacefully that night. She had Faron cuddled on her chest. Darian was the only one still up. His gaze was focused out the window. He jumped hearing Helen coming downstairs. "sorry if I spooked you." She whispered. "no, your fine. I just can't sleep is all." She nodded. "do you want me to make a cup of tea for you?" Darian dipped his head. Helen put the kettle on. "I take it your worried about Penny eh?" He sighs. "yeah. I love her very much but I'm afraid that she's becoming too much of a danger." He tapped the knife on his belt. "I may have to put her down if she attacks us again." Just then Darian's phone rang. He picked it up." Hello?" he heard crying. "Darian?"


	13. Chapter 13

Chapter Thirteen

Darian picked up his phone. "hello?" he heard crying coming from the other side. "Darian?" Darian's heart began missing beats. "Penny oh my god where are you?" he questioned. She sobbed again. "I don't know. All I know is that I woke up in front of a grocery store." She sniffed. Darian got up. He fought to get his jacket onto his shoulders. "stay where you are. I'm coming to get you." He grabbed the keys to his car. "Penny, I need for you to describe the location your in." Penny took a good look around. It was hard to see anything because of the dim street lights. "I'm standing in the quiet part of town. There's a café right across the street from me." Darian got into his car. "sounds like your near Dilys. Just stay where you are okay?" Penny gulped painfully. "okay." Darian drove into town. He saw Penny sitting in front of Dilys' shop. He parked the car little ways from her. He had an unnerving feeling well up in his stomach. Penny looked a little worse to wear. Her clothes had evidence of blood on them. She was very pale which wasn't natural for her. Darian tapped the knife on his belt gently. He waited a few more minutes before exiting out of the car slowly. "Penny?" Penny looked up at him. Darian nearly fell backwards. The skin under her eyes was red almost like she hadn't been taking care of herself. "what happened to you?" She just sat there looking at him. Darian reached for her hand helping her up. She said nothing to him and walked over to his car. Darian took Penny back to Helen's. Helen checked her over. She found it odd how Penny was just staring at her. Staring like she had just done something she shouldn't have. "Penn?" she snapped her fingers in front of Penny's face snagging her attention. Penny shook her head coming back to reality. She saw the condition her sister was in. "Fin." She whispered. "did I do this?" she wondered. "you don't remember anything at all do you?" Darian asked hugging her. "no, all I remember was that I was talking to Finley. After that everything just went black." Darian held her close. "we're going to get through this, okay?"

Darian was woken up the next morning by his phone ringing. He picked it up. "hello?" He sat up. "hey Darian, it's Detective Ryhdd. We managed to find someone who can take your case for you." Darian smiled tiredly. "good. Who did you get?" Rhydd checked his notes again. "Officer Sheppard. He's already opened the case but he'll need to interview Penny." Darian moved his arm out from underneath Penny's head. "I'll be sure to tell her once she wakes up. Hey, while I have you on the phone do you have any word on those lab results?" questioned Darian. He heard some papers being moved around in the background. "the lab found out that your cousin, Randol was behind all of this. The evidence found at both fires and the old house all matched. Now the tricky part is just bringing your cousin in." Darian sighed. "that's what I was afraid of. I'm not sure how we're going to be able to catch him. He's probably moved to the next city or country by now." Rhydd leaned back in his seat. "You let us worry about all of that. You just focus on getting your girlfriend back to her former self." Darian chuckled. "that I can do." He hung up. He laid back down on his side. Penny rolled over to face him. She buried her face in his chest.

 _Penny woke up again in a room filled with white. She began panicking again. "no not again." She tried to find a way out of the room. Sam appeared again. This time instead of wearing a completely clean pair of clothes, he was in his burned uniform. "I see you've found your way back to me again." He sneered. There was no warmth in his voice once so ever. This was the first-time Penny was ever afraid for her life. She backed away from him slowly. He began glitching out. "no. You aren't real! Go away!" she commanded. He just laughed at her. "you think simply ordering me to do anything is going to help you? I don't think so." His eyes glew. Penny felt pressure around her neck. She was forced to her knees unable to move. Pure panic started to settle in her. The room flickered to scenes of water. Penny was being dragged down by a current. She fought for a breath. Her body was paralyzed with fear. Penny could feel her life slipping away before her eyes._

 _Penny!_

 _Penny!_

 _Penny!_

Penny's eyes flew open. She sat up panting. She looked to see Darian sitting next to her. He had general concern for her in his eyes. "you okay?" he asked. She nodded. "it's just a dream." She put her face into her hands. "what do these dreams even mean?" she wondered. "I just feel like there's a message in these dreams." She laid back down again. She felt her body relax as the clutches of exhaustion got the better of her.

 _Penny woke up back in the white room. She noticed that at the other side of the room was a door. She had never seen the door before in any of the dreams she's had. She then noticed the clock on the wall next to the door. The hands on the clock were moving slowly indicating that time didn't move much here. She decided to see if the door was a way of her getting out or if it was a sign of an event to come. She carefully opened the door. "so, you've decided to finally leave?" came a voice. She looked around. She couldn't see anyone which was odd to her. The voice spoke to her again, this time it sounded like it was coming from directly above her. "look at the door again." The voice ordered. She obeyed what the voice was telling her. "you're probably hoping that door is a way of getting out right? To escape this little mind game that you've gotten lost in. Instead of me rambling on about how about you take a quick little glance as to what is behind that door hm?" Penny slowly opened the door. The door opened to a hallway that lead to a light at the end of it. "go on. Go down it." The voice chimed. Penny exhaled sharply. A part of her told her that this was a very bad idea. She took her first step into the hallway only to have the door slam shut behind her. Penny shook her head. She wasn't going to let the noise the door made startle her. She began walking down the hallway. The voice piped in again. "well congratulations sweet heart you've taken your first steps into the unknown. You know, you aren't as dumb as I thought you were. Go on keep going. Go and see what waits for you." Penny kept going. She was slowly getting excited. She hoped that whatever was at the end of this hallway was a way for her to escape the nightmares she had._

 _The light started to get bigger and brighter. Penny put an arm over her eyes to help keep the light out of them. She stepped out into another white room. She heard the voice laughing. "oops sorry I've got your hopes stirred up over nothing. My bad." Penny growled looking around. She saw another door on the other end of the room. "hey sweetie before you leave this room I want you to take a move one of the pieces on the chessboard for me. It's located in the center of the room. Go on do it or take one if you want. Doesn't matter to me." The room suddenly grew brighter again as a chessboard appeared in the center of the room. It had black and white pieces on the board. Penny eyed the board closely. "what are you waiting for? Do it." Ordered the voice. Penny bent down and moved a pawn on the white side. She jumped over the pawn that had been sitting in front of her. She lifted the pawn up from its place on the board. "good girl. Now you may proceed." Penny got to the door. She tried opening it only for it not to move. "door is locked isn't?" the voice asked. "I can tell you're probably wanting to know why though. Well go back to the chessboard and try to do what you did again." The chessboard resettled itself. Penny moved one of the pieces on the board. She attempted to jump the pawn in front of her. An unforeseen force blocked her ability to do so. "ah a simple mistake is what costed you your chance of opening the door. Why don't you try a new way Hm?" Penny sighed. She didn't like where the voice was going. She still had no idea why she was here. She moved the pawn again. She noticed that whenever she tried to jump the pawn in front of her the force would block her attempts. She gave up and put the pawn on a place next to her opponents'. She heard the lock in the door suddenly unlatch. The door opened by itself. Penny sighed in relief. She got up to go and try to leave. "do you see why I made you go back and do it again? One simple error can mess everything up for you." The door opened wider. "now keep going. Maybe this time you can get out."_

 _ **Thanks to those who have been reading and reviewing I do appreciate it. This story is going to start screwing with your head a bit. Maybe you can understand something about this that Penny can't. Or are you stuck in the white void like her? However you wish to view this is up to you.**_

 _ **Adieu**_

 _ **Melonsworth**_


	14. Chapter 14

Chapter Fourteen:

 _Penny walked in through the door again_ _._ _Country side sprawled out in front of her_ _._ _There were cherry blossom trees towering above her_ _._ _She couldn_ _'_ _t hear the voice anymore_ _._ _She let out a sigh of relief as she ran off_ _._ _She was determined to get out of this never ending nightmare_ _._ _Light flashed swallowing her_ _._

Penny woke up next to Darian. Darian was up and dressed. "I'm glad to see your up." He said as he kissed her cheek. "you have an interview with an Cardiff officer. I told him I would take you down once you woke up." She just sighed. "they really want to help you Penny. It's the only way to get Randol behind bars and put Sam at ease." He took her hand in his. "trust me. The police department in Cardiff is really good at their job." His thumb brushed the top of her knuckles. She got out of bed. She tossed on a pair of clothes. Darian tapped on Faron's door. "hey Faron, Penny and I are going to Cardiff. I'm leaving Finley in charge of you." Faron nodded. "cool. Good luck."

Penny and Darian left the house. Officer Sheppard was waiting for them downtown. "good morning you two. I am Officer Daniel Sheppard. I will be dealing with your case. Now Ms. Morris I have a few questions that I would like to ask you in private." Darian let go of Penny's hand. "I'll see you in a bit."

 _-_ _Tape Click_ _-_

 _Officer Daniel Sheppard and Ms_ _._ _Penny Morris of the PontyPandy Fire Brigade_ _._ _Interview concerning the murder of Samuel Peyton Jones_ _._ _The victim supposedly has information about the suspect in question_ _:_ _Randol Peyton Jones_ _._

 _Officer Sheppard_ _:_ _now Ms_ _._ _Morris it_ _'_ _s my understanding that you were kidnapped recently by Randol, correct?_

 _Penny_ _:_ _That is correct_

 _Officer Sheppard_ _:_ _from your memory, can you describe what the environment looks like? What everything looked like?_

 _Penny_ _:_ _It was an old house_ _._ _It looked like one of those Victorian homes but with a 50s style feel to it_ _._ _It appeared to be a house that belonged to a former surgeon_

 _Officer Sheppard_ _:_ _Doctor Erika Embrossa if I remember correctly_ _._ _She used to work at Newtown hospital before moving to Dublin, Ireland_

 _Penny_ _:_ _I was locked down in the basement area of the house_ _._ _There appeared to be bodies hanging from the ceiling_ _._ _I couldn_ _'_ _t tell if the bodies were just hallucinations or real but they were there_ _._ _They had cuts made on them_ _._

 _Officer Sheppard_ _:_ _you know what_ _'_ _s funny about that? I remember one of my officers saying that the basement smelled heavily of carrion_ _._ _He was saying that there was evidence of bodies being there are some point_ _._ _However, they found one body hidden in the freezer_ _._ _The body belong to a Ms_ _._ _Miranda Fields_ _._ _She was a former college student who was reported missing months prior to the murder_ _._

 _-_ _Penny appears to be silent_ _._ _She is taking time to process this_ _-_

 _Officer Sheppard_ _:_ _do you know what tactics he used to torture you?_

 _Penny_ _:_ _Halogenic and a scalpel_ _._

 _Officer Sheppard_ _:_ _Mr_ _._ _Jones has also informed me that you have been having nightmares_ _._

 _-_ _He slides the journal in front of her_ _._ _It displays nightmarish images of Sam along with a speech down underneath it_ _-_

 _Officer Sheppard_ _:_ _Can you describe these images?_

 _Penny_ _:_ _he_ _'_ _s been corrupted_ _._ _He_ _'_ _s not well_

 _Officer Sheppard_ _:_ _who? Samuel?_

 _Penny_ _:_ _yes, he started playing up in my dreams_ _._ _I started having nightmares once I was returned home_ _._ _These dreams would change and get more realistic each time I went to bed_ _._ _I had to write them down to be able to forget them_ _._

 _Officer Sheppard_ _:_ _Can you explain the phrase_ _: "_ _They Will Know The Joy Of Creation?_ _"_

 _Penny_ _:_ _no I can_ _'_ _t_ _._ _It_ _'_ _s just a phrase he keeps repeating over and over again_ _._

 _Officer Sheppard_ _:_ _I see_ _._ _You know Ms_ _._ _Morris, the same cuts that were on your body, were also made on Miranda_ _'_ _s_ _._ _The autopsy that was done on her body came back with different results_ _._ _You see Ms_ _._ _Miranda suffered from Type One Diabetes_ _._ _He had sedated her long enough to fill her body with sugar_ _._ _This poisoned her slowly and before long she was killed_ _._ _You, however, survived his torture methods_ _._

 _Penny_ _:_ _are you saying he_ _'_ _s coming back to finish the job?_

 _Officer Sheppard_ _:_ _that_ _'_ _s a possibility_ _._ _Well Ms_ _._ _Morris you have certainly given us enough information to put Randol behind bars_ _._ _Thank you for taking time to do this interview with me_ _._

 _-_ _End of recording_ _-_

Penny came out of the interview room with Officer Sheppard. "I have decided to put Penny through the Witness Protection Program. Just until we can track Randol down. I'll send her paperwork off but expect a few officers to be by the house." Darian nodded. He put his arm around Penny's waist. "we've also noticed a trend with Randol. There was a missing college student that we've been trying to find for quite a while. The body that came back to our labs was indeed Miranda Fields. She had also been tortured but sadly passed away. Samuel's death wasn't caused by torture but by his body being burned up badly in a fire. All of the clues point back to Randol." Darian wrote this down in his notebook. "we'll be heading out later tonight to do our search."

Penny glared out the car window. Her head sat against the glass. Darian got in to the car. He started the car up. He noticed that Penny was rather quiet. "I just want the nightmares to stop." She whispered. Darian sighed. "I know. I'm hoping that once Randol is behind bars, you'll have a little peace." He pulled away from the station. Penny sat up in her seat. She had a bad feeling about all of this. The skin on the back of her neck prickled upwards. The hairs began to stand up. Something was watching them from a distance. She tried to shrug it off as just being paranoia but the feeling still hung heavily over her. Sam's spirit formed near a corner watching them. His eyes had an accusing look in them. "he's angry." She whispered. She held her arm gently. "he doesn't like this. Not one bit." Darian looked at her. "who doesn't like it?" Penny had a haunting edge in her voice as she replied: "Sam."


	15. Chapter 15

Chapter Fifteen

Sam's spirit began to glitch out. He soon vanished from the corner he was standing on. Darian frowned. "I don't blame him. He died in the most horrific way possible." Penny rubbed her arms. "do you think once we have Randol behind bars that he will find rest?" Darian nodded. "I just feel like he's warning us that we may have gotten too close for comfort." She shivers from his heavy energy. "I just have this image of an abandoned hospital just a few miles outside of here. There's one hallway in the hospital that's lined with bodies." She gags a little bit. "I can't really describe to you the condition of the bodies. It's a little graphic for me to say." Penny laid her head against the seat. She could feel coldness pressing against her skull. "I feel this coldness pressing against my skull. I think he's trying to tell us something." Darian pulled over into a gas station parking lot. "Darian take me home then take me by that abandoned hospital." Darian looked at her. "why?" She took his hand. "I want you to trust me."

Darian and Penny showed up at the hospital. The hospital used to be quite active in it's time. It served as a lunatic asylum. Darian pulled out a camera that he retrieved from Penny's house. Penny took in a shaky breath. "alright let's go." She closed her eyes. "say what you need to Sam I'm listening." She whispered. She let him use her energy. He showed her the images of the floor below them. Blood stained the walls of the hallway. A body hung back and forth from the ceiling. Penny walked slowly in front of Darian. "this girl is hanging from the ceiling. Her eyes had been cut out of her skull. She's bleeding really badly." Penny felt a rush of cold energy go down her spine. She shook her head. "A man dragged her here to die. He sedated her just like the rest of them." The hair on the back of Darian's neck stood up. Penny just stood there for several minutes. "she's screaming in hopes that someone will hear her. She's choking for a breath." Penny put a hand on her heart. She felt chest pain and the rest of her going numb. "her energy is strong here. Her body is still here covered in a white sheet. It's in a room that would have been used to burn the bodies." Penny headed downstairs. She appeared to be in a daze. "he came back here to finish the job. He slit her throat but removed her organs. She's angry, very angry."

Penny walked into the room that had the remains of the girl she was talking about. Penny sat on the wall. "I don't feel well." She muttered. "this girl is just screaming at me. I can feel her draining my energy." Penny shook her head. She muttered something underneath her breath. "okay I get it. I know something happened to you." She whispered. Penny was beginning to feel really dizzy. "she's telling me that he drags others here. This place is literally driven by blood. So much so that it's brought something negative here." Penny literally felt like the walls were being closed in around her. "and he…he doesn't like us being here."

Penny got back up again. She needed to head outside. Most of the energy she once had was drained from her. Once she sat outside, she felt her energy come back. "This place is run on murder. He brings his bodies here in hopes no one would find them." Penny looked up at Darian. "there's some unsolved murders here. You'll need to talk to Officer Sheppard about that." He nodded. Penny sat down on the passenger seat in the car. She sighed looking out the window. She could make out a women wearing business attire staring at them through the window. She put a pale hand on the window. Penny's nerves suddenly flared up. She could feel this women's pain. Darian quickly got in. They took off away from the hospital.

About a month had gone by

The court case between Penny and Randol was nearing. Randol had been caught near the hospital as Penny had said. He is currently behind bars angry at the thought of being busted. Sam had left Penny, more or less, alone. She hadn't had a single nightmare upon receiving the news of Randol's capture. She stood in the mirror looking at herself. Darian had knocked her up again. She was really starting to show with her newer pregnancy. Finley knocked on the bathroom door. "you almost done?" she asked. Penny snapped out of her thoughts. "yeah. Sorry." She walked out of the bathroom. Her sister let out a sigh of relief. "Fucking finally." She muttered. Penny chuckled softly. Darian was already downstairs on his laptop. He waited patiently for Penny so they could leave for work that morning. Penny cleared the stairs two at a time. "you ready?" asked Darian looking up from his laptop. She nodded. "let's go." He put his laptop on the table next to the couch. He grabbed his keys from the wall. Penny tucked her hands into the front pockets of her jacket. She sat down in the passenger side seat. There was a light overcast that hinted at a possible storm moving into the area. The garage doors to the station were closed. Penny headed upstairs to the lounge leaving Darian to go and see Station Officer Steele. She was happy to be working again.

Elvis was the only in the lounge. "where are Arnold and Ellie?" asked Penny. Elvis shrugged. "Station Officer Steele said that they had the day off." Penny nodded. She sat down on the couch. She unclipped her bag from her shoulder fishing her notebook out of it. She began drawing in it. She drew a picture of the girl she had seen at the hospital a month pior. She didn't know why she was drawing her or what the sudden interest was. The girl had long dark hair, lightly tanned skin, and piercing green eyes. She also had a small butterfly tattoo over the top of her left eye. Elvis looked over her shoulder. "who's that?" Penny put her colored pencil down. "she's just a girl that I've chosen to draw. I don't really know her name." He handed her a cup of tea before sitting by her. "she looks really pretty." Penny nodded in agreement. "she is." Penny looked at the drawing one last time. She could almost feel the girl from the picture in the room with her.


	16. Chapter 16

Chapter Sixteen

Penny kept drawing in her notebook. She then proceeded to draw a picture of Sam. She lightly outlined him in an orange color representing his aura. She also drew a set of wings coming out of his back. She heard chuckling behind her. She turned around to see Sam standing behind the couch. "you've really gotten good at that." He mused. He looked at the picture she had drawn. "you like it?" she asked. He nodded. He sat down by her. "I've found that it helps to draw out the people I see come through my head." Her skin prickled up when he laid his arm across the top of her shoulder. There was a cloud of static behind her. "that way I can always remember what they looked like." She closed her notebook. She was glad that Sam was finally coming through her aura as normal. She couldn't help but still think about those nightmarish images she had seen of him. "I'm glad you've found a way of coping with your talent. I just want to say thank you for helping me find rest." She looked at him. She saddened a bit. She only hoped that he would stay by her side longer. "I am free of whatever darkness had hold of me. I can feel myself start to pass over now." His fingers touched the back of her neck. "however as much as I would love to Passover, I have been called here to serve a higher purpose. I have been picked to be your spirit guide." She tilted her head to the side. "spirit guide?" she asked. "I've been assigned to not only guide you but to protect you as well. If the bad stuff wants to fuck with you, then they'll have to deal with me." He explained. She nodded. She smiled kindly at him. The two of them gazed into each other's eyes. "I've got to go." He whispered. He brought his lips to her forehead. "I'll be watching you though. Take care."

Three days go by…

Penny looked at herself in the mirror. It was the day of the trial and her nerves were already on edge. She gripped the counter tightly. Sam appeared behind her. "Don't be so tense. You've got this." He said holding her from behind. She exhaled a heavy sigh. "I hope your right." She whispered. She enjoyed being in his company. She took look at the baby bump that sat on her abdomen. She put her hands on it gently. Her heart was doing flips in her chest. Sam dissipated leaving her alone so she could finish getting ready. She headed downstairs where her family stood waiting. Darin popped his knuckles. "let's go put Randol behind bars." He snarled. He was itching to tear Randol a new one. "where's Charlie?" she asked. Finley looked at her phone. "he's running late. He had to see the twins off to school first." Penny heard a knock on the front door. Finley opened it to see Charlie standing there. She smiled at him. "hey Charlie we were just talking about you." He panted softly. "sorry I'm late." Darian put on his sunglasses. "let's just get going."

The case was being held in the Newtown court house. Randol had already been escorted inside. He sat in a holding cell awaiting his sentence. Deep down, Randol was plotting Penny's demise. He was going to make that girl pay with every ill fiber in his body. The buzzer wailed loudly announcing the presence of a security guard. He unlocked Randol's holding cell. "time to go Mr. Peyton. The judge awaits you." Randol got to his feet. He said nothing to the guard as they walked down the hallway. Officer Shepard stood at the front of the room with Detective Rhydd and Professor Yales from Cardiff University. Professor Yales looked at Officer Sheppard. "Ms. Morris should be, here right?" Sheppard nodded. "yeah. They'll be in the room shortly. It's not time yet." The door next to them opened. They watched Randol being escorted to the witness stand in the courtroom. Randol had a wicked smile on his face. He eyed the three of them. Officer Sheppard felt his heart stop beating for a moment once he saw the insane look on Randol's face. The saying "if looks could kill" came to mind. Penny and the rest of Darian's family walked into the courtroom. Darian and Penny were located off to the right on the Plaintiff side of the room. Their lawyer, Jared Mullen sat looking at the files and evidence. "good morning you two." He greeted. He shook hands with the both of them. "I'll be helping you with the case." Darian nodded. "I must say your girlfriend was a big help in solving the other two murder cases." Penny blushed. "We notified the parents of both of the victims and they're here today too." Penny nodded.

The clock struck twelve. The prosecutor walked into the room. "all rise, the honorable Judge Matthew is residing." Judge Matthew walked up to the stand. He looked at everyone in the room. "you may be seated." Once everyone had sat down he spoke again. "we are here today for the case of Morris versus Peyton where we will be determining what kind of sentence Mr. Peyton will be receiving. Upon recent events is it true Mr. Peyton that you were accused of murdering Samuel Peyton Jones, the brother of Charlie Jones and Darian Peyton?" he questioned eyeing daggers into Randol. Randol gave a nod of his head. Judge Matthew looked down at the file. "Ms. Morris, can you recall the events of the fire that caused Mr. Peyton Jones' death?" Penny gulped. She stood up. "we were responding to a house fire at Charlie's café. Sam had tried to save his brother, Charlie but ended up dying because a part of the roof fell on him." Judge Matthew nodded. "Ms. Morris, can I ask how you are related to Mr. Peyton Jones?" Penny took in a shaky breath. She looked at Darian who gave her an encouraging look. "we were both coworkers at the time that I had known him. In the three months leading to the fire we had decided to date." Judge Matthew flashed her a half smile. "I'm sorry for your loss then. Hopefully, today we'll be able to put your mind at ease." He put the file down. "Mr. Peyton, are you aware that you've also been accused of two other unsolved murder cases?" he questioned. Randol just laughed. "I don't believe I've ever killed someone. You must have me confused for someone else." Matthew raised an eyebrow. "funny, Officer Sheppard was saying that when an autopsy was done that your fingerprints were on the bodies. Now Mr. Peyton if you expect me to believe that you are an innocent man you have another one coming." Judge Matthew put his hands down on the stand gently. He sat up. "come on now Matthew. Are you really going to base your decision around visions that some medium had?" argued Randol. "how can you be sure that her visions were even authentic?" Professor Yales pushed her glasses up on the bridge of her nose. "that's where I come in your honor." She looked up at Matthew. "I've been looking at the evidence Detective Ryhdd had presented to me. Based on what we know from the fire as well as the two murders, Mr. Peyton had attacked these victims with their guards down in extreme ways. The fire was no mere accident caused by a disastrous cook. It was an act of arson inflicted when Charlie was inside as a way of murdering him. The other two victims were murdered but in worse ways. One was a diabetic and died from sugar being in her system, the other had died by hanging and decapitation. All the DNA tests that I ran points back to Randol. I didn't need a medium's vision to determine that." Yales shot Randol a smug look. "thank you, professor, Yales. Let's all take intermission and we'll come back with Mr. Peyton's sentence."

Penny stood out in the hallway with her family. Her heart was still doing flips in her chest. Darian hugged her gently. "you're going to be okay Penny." He rubbed her back. He rocked her back and forth steadily. "you helped solve two murders and put Sam's spirit to rest." He whispered. She just nodded. She buried her face in his chest. She couldn't help but feel uneasy. She knew she wasn't out of the woods just yet. "if he tries anything to hurt you, he'll be floored before he could do anything." She sniffs. "I know. My nerves are just so twisted up right now." Darian kissed her cheek. "Don't be nervous love." The doors to the courtroom opened again indicating that break time was over. Darian took her hand. "let's go love." He walked with her down the aisle. The judge returned to the stand. He waited for everyone to be seated yet again before speaking. "welcome back everyone." He sat down in his chair. "Randol Peyton is being charged with two counts of murder and the death of a respected fireman, I have hereby determined that Randol will be serving up to 10 years in prison with no bail. This meeting has been adjourned." Penny felt the weight of the world come off her shoulders. She fell to her knees in relief.

The drive home was rather peaceful. For the first time in weeks Penny felt happier going home. The nightmares had stopped and she felt better knowing that she had been able to put the spirits of the two girls to rest. She also felt better knowing that her new future with Darian was about to begin.

The end

 _ **I'm going to be perfectly honest with you, it was a lot of fun to write this one. The late-night hours I spent working on this was totally worth it. I do hope to turn this into a series at some point. I do want to thank those who reviewed the story thus far. I'm grateful that there are some people out there who do enjoy it.**_

 _ **If you have an idea for a future fireman Sam story I will be happy to hear it. For now, this is Melonsworth signing out**_

 _ **Adieu**_


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